Mishka Westell takes us on a Texas Trip with her psychedelic illustrations.
an interview about inspiration and process.
We met Mishka Westell 12 years ago when we joined the party goers and team of wild characters responsible for the Trans Pecos Festival of Music and Love in far west Texas. The small but mighty festival is 3 days of goodtimes enjoyed by a really special lot of attendees. Austin hotelier and our dear friend Liz Lambert created and hosts the festival at her magical hotel and campground El Cosmico located just outside the city limits of Marfa. She invited us to set up a desert Filth Mart under the stars as well as produce the festival tees. What a fantastic opportunity! We never looked back and have not missed a festival since. Our world of incredibly talented friends expanded exponentially. But we are not here to talk about that, we are here to talk to Mishka Westell,,,our friend and exceptional artist. Our first collaboration with Mishka was the Trans Pecos Festival tees. We have since had the pleasure of working with Mishka on more projects than we can count, adorning our walls with A LOT of her work and becoming close friends. When Filth Mart moved to Texas, we thought it fitting to partner with Mishka on a Texas t-shirt print that would meld our counter-culture ethos and our new home. Mishka’s interdimensional, cosmic landscape did not disappoint. In conjunction with our release of this epic visual Texas tee, we interviewed Mishka to get some insight into her mind’s eye
FM: What part of your art making process has been most affected by psychedelic drugs?
MW: My interest in psychedelics started as a young teenager - I grew up in a small town called Rugby in England that had an unusually cool and psychedelic music scene for the time and place, (spawning such bands as the Spacemen 3 and Spiritualized) which I threw myself into enthusiastically. Around that time I stopped trying to paint realistically and more from my imagination. I tried to describe how everything in the world could be seen as somehow unified atomically, and I introduced vivid colours and geometric patterns into things. I think these substances can allow us to think beyond the world as we perceive it. So I guess the part of the process affected would be in the creating of the initial concept, and also sometimes the painting/drawing process itself - by allowing the art to flow in unexpected directions as you work on it.
FM: Were you turned on by Texan / Austin poster artists prior to moving to Austin?
MW:Growing up in England I wasn’t exposed to the Austin artists, though I’d heard the music. I loved American poster art but I was more aware of the San Francisco psychedelic artists like Wes Wilson, Gary Grimshaw, Victor Moscoso, and the British artists like the Hapshash and the Coloured Coat. However it didn’t take me long after moving here to start seeing it on walls, album art, murals etc...and I was blown away by the work of people like Jim Franklin, Kerry Awn, Danny Garrett and the entire ‘Armadillo Art Squad’ I love how much weirder they went, the crazy detail, the beautifully rendered portraits. Ever so slightly sinister, not so bright and fluffy. It definitely threw my style in a new direction and made me feel like I’d arrived in my artistic home.
FM: Which artists are your influences, Texan or otherwise?
MW: Other than the Armadillo Squad - I also love Martin Sharpe of Oz Magazine fame, Milton Glaser, Hieronymus Bosch, William Blake, Max Ernst & all the other Surrealists. Marfa painter Julie Speed. I’m also really into 1970’s Polish movie posters - which were always imaginatively illustrated, bizarre, and a little dark, and apparently the only artistic expression that wasn’t under communist state control at the time.
FM: What is your process
MW: To start I like to look through old books and my collection of old counterculture magazines for inspiration. I try and look at a lot of random images unrelated to the topic to be illustrated so my brain can be led in an unpredictable direction. I sketch ideas. I tell myself how terrible and untalented I am when I can't think of anything good. Once I have the idea it can sometimes take weeks to finish the drawing which is always done by hand using ink on paper. Then I usually adjust, colorize and make separations for print in photoshop. I do not print my own work but leave that up to the experts (like Mike!)
FM: Do you have a different approach for a piece depending on if it is a shirt / poster / album art ?
MW: Personally I like a simple design with less detail for a shirt, is more impactful and stands out from far away, . Posters are usually 18 x 24” so allow for more detail but I always think about what someone would want to frame and put on their wall, versus what someone would want to wear and look cool in. Album art is directed a lot more by the feel and themes of the particular group of songs and I always listen to the music a lot before starting the design and also read the lyrics.
FM: Which job opportunity has blown you away the most?
MW: So hard to choose! I’ve been so lucky since moving here to make posters for many of my musical heroes, opportunities that the younger me would never have believed possible! It’s got to be the 13th Floor Elevators, Mavis Staples or Leon Russell. Or Patti Smith…or Dr John!
What is your favorite piece of your work?
Poster wise I think maybe the hermit crab for Jack White, which took longer to draw than anything I’ve ever done. Or in contrast, with its stark simplicity the Mavis Staples one has a lot of impact I think. A close third would be the magic mushroom El Cosmico pandemic poster, which looked especially good on a Filth Mart shirt!
We printed 2 Mishka Westell Texas tees. A short sleeve white crew and a long sleeve black crew. You can check them out at these links :)
Thanks to Mishka for taking the time to answer our questions and be rad.
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